United Bamboo Spring 2012: For the Hippest Girl at the Office (and Maybe More Cats in the Works)

"We wanted to make clothes you can wear to work," Thuy Pham, one half of the design duo that is United Bamboo told us after their spring 2012 show. And if you want to be the chicest, hippest, girl at the office, this collection is for you.
There was an emphasis on suiting, but with a relaxed bent: a black leather blazer you could live in; navy linen pleat front pants and blazers to match; printed slouchy silk dresses. But as always with United Bamboo, there are subtle twists and tricks. The feminine bow details at the shoulder of dresses served a function, too. Pham demonstrated on a dress his co-designer Aoki that the bow is actually a ribbon sewn through the waist of the dress, so when it's tied at the shoulder it's gathered just-so. Blazers were split open at the back. Pham said the pair were influenced by Issey Miyake in the '90s. The abstract prints were done by Aoki's husband, a painter who was inspired by '80s street graffiti.
And of course we couldn't leave without asking about their famous cat calendar (obviously a Fashionista favorite).

"We wanted to make clothes you can wear to work," Thuy Pham, one half of the design duo that is United Bamboo told us after their spring 2012 show. And if you want to be the chicest, hippest, girl at the office, this collection is for you.

There was an emphasis on suiting, but with a relaxed bent: a black leather blazer you could live in; navy linen pleat front pants and blazers to match; printed slouchy silk dresses. But as always with United Bamboo, there are subtle twists and tricks. The feminine bow details at the shoulder of dresses served a function, too. Pham demonstrated on a dress his co-designer Aoki that the bow is actually a ribbon sewn through the waist of the dress, so when it's tied at the shoulder it's gathered just-so. Blazers were split open at the back. Pham said the pair were influenced by Issey Miyake in the '90s. The abstract prints were done by Aoki's husband, a painter who was inspired by '80s street graffiti.

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And of course we couldn't leave without asking about their famous cat calendar (obviously a Fashionista favorite). "I want to do something but maybe not a calendar," Pham said. "If it's something really clever we'll do it."

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In case you forgot, Thuy Pham and Miho Aoki, creators of $500 cat outfits, design cute clothes for people, too. Not that they want you to forget about their feline obsession--the gift bag included this discount card that looked like a cat driver’s license. However, this cat-free collection did a good job of reminding us to take them seriously again.
United Bamboo’s Spring 2011 collection was inspired by "shimmering green ocean, clean, pale sand, and puffy clouds in an endless blue sky." The clothes were fit for a tropical vacation. The models walked through an airy two-room gallery space to upbeat west-African - sounding music provided by Brian DeGraw of Gang Gang Dance. It was kind of like Vampire Weekend meets “Under the Sea” from The Little Mermaid (yeah, my musical references are really sophisticated) and fit perfectly with the collection. The vibe was beachy, minimalist and ladylike.
There were definitely a few instances of seasonal trends we’re already starting to notice, including sheer (and not just on top - it seems that visible panties are on their way to becoming a thing), muted colors, and harnesses. There were also a few of these beautiful floral prints with birds and trees, in the form of silk drawstring pants and dresses. Similar works of art could be found at the bottom of an ombre-ish dress and matching long coat. The prints, which added a surprising pop to an otherwise fairly monotone collection, were done by French artist Pier Fichefeux.

The second installment of United Bamboo's beloved cat calendar went up for sale last week. And last night, we feted the cattastic calendar at Creatures of Comfort (205 Mulberry St.), where framed prints of the cats done up in RTW United Bamboo frocks are being auctioned off to benefit Animal Haven and Kitty Kind (as if you needed another excuse to go to Creatures of Comfort).
Beyond raising funds to help the kitties, the best part about last night's party was the chance to see the glorious calendar in full. On the flip side of every catetorial calendar page, there's a kitty bio (including their pet peeves) and super cute anecdotes about them. Like how Oscar, Mr. February, is blind and has cheated death twice and does NOT like it when you blow on his whiskers! And that Egon lived in Istanbul for a while. And that TJ loves seaweed nori. Of course he does.
But we're sure you want to know more. So we bring you, exclusively, the backstory behind the United Bamboo calender cats.

Last night Fashionista teamed up with United Bamboo, Julia Frakes, and Creatures of Comfort to host a fête celebrating United Bamboo's 2011 Cat Calendar. (Which is of course, our favorite calendar. Sorry Pirelli girls!)
The party took place inside Creatures of Comfort's spacious SoHo store, filled with more Margiela than I've ever seen outside the MMM store on Greenwich St. The real highlight of the party, though, was the framed portraits of United Bamboo's calendar cats, which were being auctioned off to benefit Animal Haven and Kitty Kind. Unfortunately, no actual cats were at the party, but there were a lot of cool-cat downtown scenesters.
DJ Johnny Misheff spun tunes, Julia Frakes hopped by wearing her bunny ears, and the Fashionista team staffed the bar, meaning the party was so good we completely ran out of wine. So if you woke up this morning in a strange place clutching a cat photo...oops!

Fashion darling Joseph Altuzarra's spring 2012 collection seemed tailor made for front row attendee Carine Roitfeld, who was an early champion of the young designer.
There were leather bodycon dresses and mini skirts galore as well as enviable outerwear (oh, and strong references to Balenciaga). But if you think all that leather equals a hard-edged, black and white, urban collection think again. Don't get me wrong: the styling was hard--models had bare faces with strong blackened in eyebrows and their hair came down in a thick curtain over their eyes-- but the tight leather dresses and skirts were inset with panels of bright tropical prints. That Altuzarra was feeling the tropics was clear as models walked in front of a backdrop of lush jungle greens.
It's hard to get the fast-paced high-powered city girl to wear anything other than black and leather but Altuzarra might get her to wear color and prints come spring.